Snow removal apparatus

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for clearing snow from driveways and the like includes a plate-like snow plow that is towed longitudinally along a surface by a towing vehicle moving perpendicularly thereto. An elongate tow rope couples the towing vehicle to the snow plow and is flexed around a pulley located above the outward end of the surface. A chain for operatively locating the pulley has one end staked to the ground off one side of the surface. The pulley may be coupled to any desired link of the chain and thereby adjusted in position transversely of the surface to permit a series of longitudinal passes of the scraper along the surface.

United States Patent 1 1 Young 1 SNOW REMOVAL APPARATUS Lee Young, 7425College, Kansas City, Mo. 64132 [22] Filed: Aug. 26, 1974 [21] Appl.No.: 500,564

[76] Inventor:

[52] U.S. Cl. 37/41; 172/265; 172/351;

37/115; 37/53; 172/361 [51] Int. Cl. E0lh 5/06; 1302f 3/56 [58] Field ofSearch 172/23, 24, 25, 26, 26.5,

[451 July 8,1975

1,801,652 Alby 37/125 X 1 57] ABSTRACT Apparatus for clearing snow fromdriveways and the like includes a plate-like snow plow that is towedlongitudinally along a surface by a towing vehicle movingperpendicularly thereto. An elongate tow rope couples the towing vehicleto the snow plow and is flexed around a pulley located above the outwardend of the surface. A chain for operatively locating the pulley has oneend staked to the ground off one side of the surface. The pulley may becoupled to any desired link of the chain and thereby adjusted inposition transversely of the surface to permit a series of longitudinalpasses of the scraper along the surface.

5 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures SNOW REMOVAL APPARATUS BACKGROUND ANDSUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to snowremoval apparatus and more specifically to apparatus that isparticularly useful in plowing snow from driveways and like surfaces.

Existing snow removal equipment is generally not well suited for use inclearing snow from driveways, sidewalks, and other relatively smallareas. The major problem in the past has been the provision of apparatusthat quickly and effectively removes snow with a minimum amount of laborand yet is not excessively expensive. The various types of vehiculartype snow plows that are presently available are so costly as to beimpractical for the average individual to purchase or rent for use inclearing small surfaces. Although blower type implements have beendeveloped for use in small snow removal operations, these implements areprovided with their own power sources and are therefore also ofprohibitive expense to most individuals, particularly in view of therather limited need for snow removal equipment in many geographicalareas. Less expensive equipment that is not self powered is alsodeficient from a practical standpoint because its use typically requiresa substantial amount of time and labor. Consequently, most individualscontinue to shovel snow in a conventional manner.

As a result of the foregoing drawbacks in existing snow removalequipment there remains a need to eliminate, in a practical manner, thetime and hard work required to shovel snow in a conventional manner. Itis the primary goal of the present invention to meet that need.

More specifically, it is an important object of this invention toprovide a rugged, economically constructed apparatus for removing snowfrom driveways and similar surfaces.

Another object of the invention is to provide apparatus of the characterdescribed that is adapted to clear snow from driveways and the likerapidly and with a minimum amount of labor. It is a particular featureof the invention that the snow removal apparatus may be quickly andeasily set up and disassembled.

In conjunction with the preceding objects, it is still another object ofthe invention to provide apparatus of the character described that ispowered by an automobile or other readily available vehicle. It is afurther significant feature of the invention that the snow removalapparatus is constructed to permit the towing vehicle to operateentirely in the street, where the space limitations of the surface to becleared do not impair the maneuverability of the vehicle.

Other and further objects of this invention, together with the featuresof novelty appurtenant thereto, will appear in the course of thefollowing description of the drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In the accompanying drawing whichforms a part of the specification and is to be read in conjunctiontherewith, and in which like reference numerals are employed to indicatelike parts in the various views:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating snow removal apparatusembodying the present invention in operating position to clear snow froma driveway; and

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary, elevational view from the left sideof FIG. 1 showing the plate-like snow plow and its coupling to the towrope.

Referring now to the drawing in detail and initially to FIG. 1, the snowremoval apparatus is illustrated in operating position to clear snowfrom a driveway 10 which has a street 11 perpendicular thereto. Theapparatus includes a snow plow in the form of a substantially upright,plate-like scraper 12 that is pulled longitudinally along driveway 10 bya towing vehicle 13 traveling in the street. Scraper 12 comprises atrapezoidal plate having parallel top and bottom edges and sides edgesthat angle inwardly from bottom to top. This particular configurationprovides a wide bottom edge for plowing and a low center of gravitywhich helps to stabilize the scraper as it is pulled along the driveway.Scraper 12 is preferably constructed of plywood or a similar inexpensiveand relatively lightweight material that possesses adequate strength. Athin metal strip 14 is suitably attached to the forward face of scraper12 at the bottom edge thereof to provide a hard surface for the edge ofthe scraper.

A pair of spaced handles 15 and 16 having hand grips are mounted to thetop of scraper l2. Handles l5 and 16 each have a pair of spaced,vertical lower ends which are secured against the respective oppositesides of the scraper. A pair of screws 17 and 18 fasten the lower endsof handle 15 to the top portion of scraper 12, while another pair ofscrews 19 and 20 are utilized to similarly fasten handle 16 to thescraper a suitable distance to the side of handle 15. Each handle 15 and16 includes a curved grip portion that extends integrally above thelower ends and is open in the middle to provide a comfortable hand grip.

A pair of eye bolts or hooks 21 and 22 having threaded shanks extendfrom the front surface of scraper 12 at laterally spaced positionsequidistant from the vertical axis of the scraper and below the centerof gravity thereof. As particularly shown in FIG. 2, a pair of spacednuts 21a and 21b are threaded onto the hook 21 and into engagement withthe respective opposite sides of scraper 12 to secure hook 21 inposition. Hook 22 is similarly fastened to scraper 12 by means of a pairof threaded nuts (not shown). The links at the opposite ends of aflexible chain 23 are inserted over the respective hooks 21 and 22 tocouple the chain with scraper 12. Chain 23 is in turn connected with aflexible tow rope 24 by means of an S-shaped coupling 25 having curvedhook portions at its opposite ends. One of the hook portions is attachedto a loop 240 formed at one end of rope 24, while the other hook portionof coupling 25 is hooked to an intermediate link of chain 23. Since itis desirable to angle scraper 12 with respect to its direction of motionalong driveway l0, coupling 25 is normally hooked to chain 23 at a linkoffset from the center thereof in order to achieve the desired an glingof the scraper.

Tow rope 24 is of a length greater than the length of driveway 10 and isof sufficient strength to tow scraper 10 along the driveway. Rope 24 isflexed around a substantially free, horizontally disposed pulley 26, andthe outward end 24b of the rope is suitably coupled to vehicle 13. Thetowing vehicle may conveniently be an automobile, a small truck, or anyother available vehicle,

and rope 24 may be secured to any desired portion thereof such as to ahitch 13a or to the vehicle frame.

Pulley 26 is coupled to the free portion of a flexible chain 27. Thepulley housing is provided with an apertured lug 260 which projectssidewardly therefrom. An S-shaped double hook coupling 28 has the curvedhook portion at one end inserted in the lug aperture, while theoppositely disposed curved hook of coupling 28 is hooked in a selectedlink of chain 27. A link at or near the opposite end of chain 27 isreceived by the vertical leg 29a of an L-shaped steel stake 29. Thevertical stake leg 29a is firmly driven into the ground near street 11and slightly to the side of driveway l opposite vehicle 13. Thehorizontal upper leg 29b of the stake prevents the connection of thechain link to stake 29 from inadvertently slipping and also facilitatesthe removal of the stake from the ground. it is significant to note thatthe removable nature of the double hooked coupling 28 permits pulley 26to be readily coupled to different links of chain 27 in order to locatethe pulley at various positions across the width of the driveway. Theflexible chain 27 has a length equal to at least half the width of thedriveway so that by alternatively locating the stake 29 on one side ofthe driveway and then the opposite side, the entire width can be coveredby chain 27.

To operate the scraping apparatus, stake 29 is driven into the groundand a link near one end of chain 27 is attached thereto. S-shapedcoupling 28 is hooked to the pulley lug 26a and to an appropriate linkalong the length of chain 27, depending upon the desired starting pointacross the width of driveway l0. Rope 24 is passed around pulley 26 andits opposite ends 24a, 24b are attached to S-shaped coupling 25 andtowing vehicle 13, respectively. The opposite ends of chain 23 aresecured to hooks 21 and 22, and the other hook of coupling 25 isattached to an intermediate link of chain 23, preferably a link offsetfrom the center of the chain in order to orient the scraper at a slightangle. It is noted that fastener 25 is readily shiftable between variouschain links to vary the angle of scraper 12 as desired.

Scraper 12 is initially positioned at the inward end of driveway l0 andheld substantially upright by an operator. As vehicle 13 is drivenslowly forwardly along the street, chain 27 remains tightly drawn toproperly locate pulley 26, which cooperates with rope 24 to translatethe movement of the vehicle into substantially perpendicular movement ofthe scraper in a straight longitudinal path along the edge of thedriveway. The towing of scraper along the driveway plows snow to oneside due to the slight angle at which the scraper is oriented by meansof its offset coupling to tow rope 24. The curved handles 15 and 16permit the operator to easily guide the scraper and press the samedownwardly with the required amount of force. Since the operator mayfind it convenient to hold scraper 12 at a slightly rearwardly tiltedposition, it is noted that such tilting is easily achieved and isactually facilitated by the coupling of tow rope 24 at a low position onthe scraper.

As scraper 12 is towed along the driveway, chain 27 remains tightlydrawn due to the force exerted on pulley 26 by the advancing vehicle 13.Chain 27 thereby assures that pulley 26 is retained in the correctoperative position above the outward end of driveway l0 and directly inalignment with the desired path of scraper 12. In actual practice, itmay sometimes be necessary to secure the tow rope end 24b to vehicle 13at a height considerably different from that at which the opposite end240 is coupled to chain 23. Therefore, it is significant that chain 27permits pulley 26 to be freely drawn either upwardly or downwardly asthe vehicle ad- 5 vances.

After the first longitudinal pass of scraper 12 along the entire lengthof driveway 10 has been completed, coupling 28 is moved outwardly to adifferent link of chain 27. The appropriate link is chosen such thatpulley 26 will be located at a position transversely of the drivewaywherein the second pass of the scraper will normally be adjacent to thepreviously completed pass. Vehicle 13 is then backed near the outer endof the driveway, and scraper 12 is returned to the inward end ofdriveway l0 and located properly to make a second longitudinal passparallel to and beside the first pass. Again, chain 27 retains pulley 26in the proper position directly ahead of the scraper. The procedure isthereafter repeated the required number of times until driveway 10 hasbeen completely cleared of snow.

It should be understood that the towing vehicle travels entirely in thestreet and that the space limitations of the driveway or other surfacedo not impair the operation of the apparatus. it is also pointed outthat the towing vehicle need not be steered with a high degree ofaccuracy since the pulley is located directly in line with the desiredpath of the scraper to assure that the scraper will be towed theretowardwith only a minimum amount of guidance by the operator.

From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one welladapted to attain all the ends and objects hereinabove set forthtogether with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherentto the structure.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are ofutility and may be employed without reference to other features andsubcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of theclaims.

Since many possible embodiments may be made of the invention withoutdeparting from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matterherein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to beinterpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. Apparatus for use with a towing vehicle to remove snow from asurface, said apparatus comprising:

a scraper adapted to be towed in a longitudinal path along said surfaceby said vehicle to plow snow from said surface, said scraper includinghandle means adapted for manual grasping to enable same to be held andguided;

a horizontally disposed pulley freely elevated in proximity to one endof said surface, said pulley being located rearwardly of said vehicleand ahead of said scraper in alignment with the longitudinal path to betraversed by said scraper;

an elongate guy member having one end adapted to be anchored at alocation offset to one side of said surface and a freely disposedportion coupled to said pulley in a manner permitting substantially freevertical movement of the latter; and

a flexible tow line of a greater length than the length of said surfaceand having opposite ends, one of said ends being coupled to said scraperand the other of said ends being adapted for coupling to said vehiclewith the tow line being flexed around said pulley,

whereby said scraper may be towed by said vehicle along a longitudinalpath in a direction toward said pulley and substantially perpendicularto the direction of travel of said vehicle with said guy memberoperatively retaining said pulley in alignment with said longitudinalpath.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, including coupling means forconnecting said scraper to said one tow line end at an angle withrespect thereto, said coupling means thereby angling said scraper withrespect to the direction of travel of same along said longitudinal path.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said scraper comprises asubstantially upright plate member having a bottom edge and a top edgeof lesser dimension than said bottom edge.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, including a coupling member havingopposite ends attached to said scraper at horizontally spaced locationsthereon, and a connector for removably connecting said one tow line endto said coupling member at selected locations along the length thereof,whereby the angle of said plate member with respect to the direction oftravel of same along said longitudinal path may be adjustably varied.

5. Apparatus as set forth in claim I, including means for removablycoupling said pulley to said guy member at selected locations along thelength thereof to permit adjustable positioning of said pulleytransversely across said surface.

t :l: t s: t

1. Apparatus for use with a towing vehicle to remove snow from asurface, said apparatus comprising: a scraper adapted to be towed in alongitudinal path along said surface by said vehicle to plow snow fromsaid surface, said scraper including handle means adapted for manualgrasping to enable same to be held and guided; a horizontally disposedpulley freely elevated in proximity to one end of said surface, saidpulley being located rearwardly of said vehicle and ahead of saidscraper in alignment with the longitudinal path to be traversed by saidscraper; an elongate guy member having one end adapted to be anchored ata location offset to one side of said surface and a freely disposedportion coupled to said pulley in a manner permitting substantially freevertical movement of the latter; and a flexible tow line of a greaterlength than the length of said surface and having opposite ends, one ofsaid ends being coupled to said scraper and the other of said ends beingadapted for coupling to said vehicle with the tow line being flexedaround said pulley, whereby said scraper may be towed by said vehiclealong a longitudinal path in a direction toward said pulley andsubstantially perpendicular to the direction of travel of said vehiclewith said guy member operatively retaining said pulley in alignment withsaid longitudinal path.
 2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, includingcoupling means for connecting said scraper to said one tow line end atan angle with respect thereto, said coupling means thereby angling saidscraper with respect to the direction of travel of same along saidlongitudinal path.
 3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein saidscraper comprises a substantially upright plate member having a bottomedge and a top edge of lesser dimension than said bottom edge. 4.Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, including a coupling member havingopposite ends attached to said scraper at horizontally spaced locationsthereon, and a connector for removably connecting said one tow line endto said coupling member at selected locations along the length thereof,whereby the angle of said plate member with respect to the direction oftravel of Same along said longitudinal path may be adjustably varied. 5.Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, including means for removablycoupling said pulley to said guy member at selected locations along thelength thereof to permit adjustable positioning of said pulleytransversely across said surface.